Improved brick-machine



S; STRONG. ABRICK MACHINE.

No. 38,716.- Patented May 26, 1863.

SAMUEL sTEoNG, oEjwAsHiNeToN,

PATENT OFFICE..

DISTRIOTOF COLUMBI, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND JEROME B. WOODRUFF, OF SAME- PLACE.

IMPROVED BmoK-MAcHlNE.

specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 38,716, dated May 26, 1863.

.To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL STRONG, of the county and .city of Washington, in the District of Columbia, have invented certain -new and useful Improvements in Machinery f ir Molding and'Pressing Brick; and the follJwin g is a full, clear, andfexactdescription of the same, reference .being had to the accomp tnyin g drawings, making a part of this speci- Iication, in which- Figure l shows aplan or top view of the machine. Fig. 2 rcpresentsta side viewor elevation of the machine. i

My machinery' pertains to that class for making brick of untempered or pulverized clay; and my invention consists of thesimplitied construction and arrangement of the movable parts forming the mold, so that three .or more times the bulk may be compressed by the action of the contracting mold on all sides, thereby equalizing the rpressure upon. the corners and excluding the air from among the particles.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will describe it more fully, referring to the drawings and the letters marked thereon.

I make my frame of timbers A A in a substantial manner, of suitable height to' be con venient for Working. On the top of the frame A'A, at one end, is a iiat metal plate, B, ot'a suitable size to form the bottom of the mold and support all of the parts operatingon and in connection therewith. In the bed-plate B is an opening, into which is tted a sliding bed, b, of metal, the same thickness of the bedplate, and forms the under side of the mold proper when it is closed upto' aV joint, and 'when the slide bis drawn out it leaves an open space through the plate or table for the free discharge ofthe brick onto a trap-door, v

w, hung underneath and closed by a weight,

a', so that the weight of the brick resting upon it will tip up the trap and allow the brick to slide safely out of the way to be carried oft'. On the top of the plate B, and iirmly bolted with it to the frame A, are two wedged-shaped pieces, C O, the thickness of the brick, which pieces O C forni the support to guide the wedges ce, which compress the ends of the brick and form the ends oftthe mold. :The wedges e e are operated by the slide or plunger D, which is fitted into notches f f in the wedges e e, which expand by the action of elliptic springs it' whenthe plungerD is drawn back 4to charge the mold with clay from the hopper E. Over the sliding wedges c aand plunger D is secured the top plate, F, it hav-f ing on its under side a block or projection, g, which forms one edge of the mold. The top plate has an opening through it, to which is secured the hopper E, to admit and conduct l the 'clay into the mold for the action of the compressors, which are operated by piston c, guided by a cross-head, H, and guides h h, the whole being put in motion by an eccentric or crank shaft, K, and-'coupling-bar k, secured to run in boxes Z l at the 'opposite end ot the frame A. The action of the machine is equal- 'izedby the momentum of the' iiy-wheel L on the end of the crank-shaft K. After the brick is formed, it is delivered from the mold by the action of the cam m on the shaft K, which works the vertical lever n, connecting with a rock-shaft, P, by the rod o. To the rock-shaft P` there is an arm, q, reaching to and operating the slide b in the bed-plate B,so as to open the bottoni of the mold, and a vertical plunger, R, is placed over the opening, and held up by a spring, r, and is forced down by the arm S on the rock-shaft` P, thereby causing the certain liberation of the brick from the mold onto the balanced trap-door w. I

My machine may be operatei by any kind of power, and will mold a perfect brick of a superior quality at every revolutionI of thev4 crank-shaft, no matter how great the speed may be. Thus it will readily be seen that by my extremely simple and comparativelyl cheap arrangement-'of mechanism brick of `a very superior quality can be molded with the most astonishing facility.

Having'thusfully described my invention,y what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The construction and arrangement of the expanding and contr acting mold by the action of the sliding wedges ce and theplunger D, operating in the manner as herein described, for the -purposes set forth.

2. The balanced trap-door zo, for receiving and dischargingthe brick after itis liberated from the mold, in combination with the slide Iaid plunger R, substantiallv as herein speci- SAMUEL sTEoNe.

Witnesses :v g

E. W. WOODRUFF, N. W. NOETERUP.v 

